OH, sleep regression…. we meet again. You reared your ugly head around 12 months… and now you’re back just as I thought our falling asleep routine was too easy.
With an 18 month old there’s a lot of factors that make this one tough. They can walk…which means they know the glory of the world outside of the crib. They (if they’re like my little guy…) might be able to climb out of the crib on their own….which means they may be on the loose on their own in a matter of minutes. They are starting to or have already developed some separation anxiety, so they have another source of frustration and anxiety surrounding bedtime. Most 18 month olds may be teething- getting their canines and molars around this time (we already had all of our teeth but the 2 year molars… so not an issue here for us.). So, all in all, a fun time to undergo another sleep regression. We had a very abrupt and obvious sleep regression right around 18 months, and now at 22 months, this routine is still going strong and working well on most average days.
In our case, it was fixed relatively easily in a matter of 1-2 weeks. There was initially just a lot of angry screaming…. Once I realized that he was upset because he just plain wasn’t ready to sleep, I tried to observe what his new needs were and adapt the best I could. I wanted to try to change our routine so it could better fit his new needs and yet stay firm on things which I didn’t want to become new hindrances or habits. Calvin was demonstrating that his mind just wasn’t turning off and he was getting frustrated and stir crazy just sitting in his crib, so we decided to adjust. And by we, I mean I…. because my husband doesn’t get home from work until 10:30pm.
(Calvin takes one nap usually from 12-2ish, dinner at 6:30, and bath immediately following)
Our OLD sleep routine from 13ish months- 18 Months:
Bath
Pajamas, brush teeth
Books in mom+ dad’s bed
Lay down in crib with music, pacifier, white noise, bear
Sing two songs + done!
Asleep at 7:30PM (give or take 15 minutes)
Our NEW sleep routine starting at 18 months:
Bath
Pajamas, brush teeth
-QUIET PLAYTIME for 45m-60m-
This was a game changer. we would come downstairs to play after getting dressed for bed. I would have the LIGHTS LOW (almost off….) have LULLABY MUSIC on… and he would explore and play on his own. I try to keep this time mostly independent. He gets extremely focused on manipulating objects, playing with his little cars, etc during this time and I am able to do the dishes and clean up the kitchen while he plays. This worked wonders because he had a quiet calm environment where he could have some wind-down time for his busy little brain. When he has had enough time to wind down, he always grabs two cars and his water cup, and comes running over to me pointing to the stairs to let me know he is ready.
Read books in mom + dad’s bed with sippy cup of water + pacifier (yup, its still in the mix….used for sleepy times only….)
Lie down in his crib with his sippy cup of water, pacifier, bear, white noise, music playing.
He gets two songs and then I’m out!
90% of the time he falls asleep- every once in a while he needs some extra attention and wants me to stay in there and sing a little longer.
Asleep at 8:30PM(give or take 15 minutes)
Every baby is completely different and it is highly unlikely that what worked for us will work for you, but let this be another one of you endless google search results you read when desperately trying to find new things to try to get your well deserved sleep time back…. or if you’re like me and you just plain don’t sleep because you are using every free minute to get work done….. well, you get your well deserved…. work time back…
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